Editor’s note: 42Fifty staff reporter Torian Duncombe is featured in this article as the model for Botnaru’s clothing line, but he did not take part in the writing or editing of this story.
OH senior Vlad Botnaru is the proud owner of his clothing brand, Lyfe. From starting as just a photographer to now creating an entire brand, Botnaru has made a lot of progress in the short time he has been working.
“I started [the brand] through parties,” Botnaru said. “I’m not going there to have fun; I’m going there to create content and talk to the people that own the venue, that promoted the party, and talking to the quote, unquote, higher-ups.”
Botnaru knows his connections are integral to his brand and are a big reason for where he is right now. Botnaru’s strategy of going to parties for business instead of pleasure has given him a lot of success in his overall business.
“Many other brand owners don’t really have any ideas or know the possibilities when it comes to promoting your brand [[…]] when you know how to hold a camera and what it takes, you have a whole different book, I guess,” Botnaru said.
Botnaru’s talent in photography has been a significant part in the promotion of his brand from the beginning. His ability to shoot for models and recruit them as models for his own brand has proven to be a great strategy since one of the most important aspects of making a clothing brand is having good models to promote your brand.
OH junior Torian Duncombe got to know Vlad through sharing their interests in fashion, and now Duncombe models for Botnaru’s clothing line.
“He just liked my outfits and that’s what got us to know each other,” said Duncombe. The first time they met, “[Vlad] walked up to me and was like, ‘hey I like your hoodie. Could you send me the place of where you got it from?’” Botnaru eventually offered Duncombe the opportunity to model for him and his brand to further push out the word of his clothing line.
”I’ve had a long dream of modeling in general and I think it’s something I’m very capable of doing,” Duncombe said when asked why he said yes to the modeling role. “I think fashion and modeling is like an art statement to me, there’s all types of different art you know there’s music, paintings, but I think fashion tells a story to me.”
Being a student is one thing, but creating and managing a successful business is one of the most impressive things you can do while in high school. Botnaru has managed to balance both of these worlds and is still working to grow his business so that in the future, students might see his ideas everywhere.
“I think it’s important to support student business,” said Duncombe. ”It could help out students’ futures and invest in these businesses. It could benefit them, yourself, others, and it can make a community.”
I am a Senior at OHS and in my second year as a journalist. I am a podcast co-editor and a co-editor in chief and I am excited for my second year being a journalist for the school. You can contact me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
